You will forget
by immola
Summary: What happens if Emma falls under a curse? A curse none of them has met before? A curse that would slowly make her forget everyone she cares about? AU, starts when they save the town in ASOTM. Captain Swan.
1. chapter one

**I had this idea wandering around in my head for a very long time. It will be long, not that long, but pretty long. I really hope you will enjoy it:)**

**I don't own anything.**

* * *

The wave of magic pushes Emma back and she falls on her knees. Damn, it hurts. Her hands, her arms are aching, she tries to move her fingers as she stands up slowly and glances at Regina.

"We did it", she says, and the raven-haired woman nods with a slight of a smile. Emma laughs in relief and lets her mother hug her really tight, and then her father pats her shoulder and gives her a proud look, and then she turns around, holds her hand out for Henry and says, "We did it, kid."

But he's nowhere to be found.

"Kid?" Emma repeats in shock. "Henry!" Regina shouts.

"Oh, no", Emma whispers. She is not losing him, not again. She clenches her fists in anger when they all start running towards the exit. He can't be far.

The sunlight hits her eyes as they come out of the mines, but she doesn't stop. She can't.

"We need to find them!" she yells to her parents. "I'll check at the docks!"

She hears them shouting back something about going to the borders but she doesn't really listen. Regina disappears in purple smoke. And Emma continues running.

It was Tamara and Greg, she's sure about that. Two ordinary people, with no magic but simple weapons, or at least Tamara has a gun. Emma can feel the magic running through her veins like electricity. She could beat them easily. If they do anything to Henry…

The salty ocean air tickles her nose, just like when she's at Henry's castle. She runs faster.

"Swan!" she hears a shout behind. She stops and catches her breath, almost falling to her knees again.

"I really don't have time for you now!" she says, before she could tell where he is. But some small part of her sighs in relief, because he's still here, and he hasn't left.

With the bean he stole from her.

She gets ten times mad than she actually was, even though she doubts that it's possible. Hook runs towards her. "What's the matter? I thought we were saving the town!"

_We?_

"Well, and I thought you didn't care about anyone but yourself", she snaps back, then looks around and continues running. She needs to find them.

Hook runs right behind her, she can hear his every breath, and really, how can something like that be extremely annoying and incredibly calming at the same time?

"Maybe I just needed reminding that I could", he says when they both slow down at a corner. Emma was about to focus on which direction she should keep going when it just hits her. She turns to face him, "What?"

He looks like he hates explaining things, he propably does pretty much.

"You reminded me", he repeats, holding her the small, glass-like magical bean, "that I could care for others, too. Now, are we gonna save the town or not?"

She gasps. Saving the town. Right. "We already did that."

"Oh", he nods. "That's good I guess."

Emma puts the bean in her pocket. "Greg and Tamara. They took Henry."

If someone would only be telling her this story, she would propably not believe it. The way his face turns, his mouth opens slowly, and he frowns. "Then we must find him", he says with a concerned voice.

And Emma really doesn't have the time to wonder where all this caring comes from suddenly. She had only seen it twice before, and when she learned he'd left with the last bean, she thought it was all gone. But it's not.

She nods, and continues the search, this time with a pirate on her side.

* * *

"There!" Hook yells, pointing towards his ship, and there they are, standing on the docks, holding Henry's shoulders, staring down at the water.

"No!" Emma hears herself screaming, then her legs move on their own. They are actually really close, it takes her a few seconds to reach them. Greg notices her first and steps closer to the edge, pulling Henry with him. That's when Emma sees it: a portal in the water, spinning with green light.

"Not so fast, mate", she hears an annoyed voice before Greg gets hit in the head with a hook. Hook grabs Henry and takes him away from the water. Tamara tries to catch him and Greg at the same time, but it really doesn't work well for her. Greg falls right into the portal.

Emma holds out her fingers and feels Henry's calming touch.

"You might want to follow him", she tells Tamara. "The portal can close any second, and you really don't want to stay here with us. There's nothing you could do now."

Her every word is a threat.

But Tamara smiles.

"There is one last thing I can do", she says, holding out a gun. It's different from the one she shot Neal with, but Emma can't tell the exact difference. All she knows is that it's dangerous.

"Get Henry out of here", she tells Hook. He wants to argue but adds, "Now." He slowly back away, covering Henry with his body. Emma sees in the corner of her eye as they disappear. It's funny how she trusts him with her son's life.

"Oh, it was never my intense to hurt Henry, by the way", Tamara says. "But Peter Pan needs him."

"Peter Pan?" Emma asks, trying not to laugh. "How the hell do you know him?"

"Doesn't matter!" Tamara yells, raising the gun, pointing it right at Emma's chest. She gasps. "But it seems like we can't give him the boy until you're in the way. We have plenty of magic beans to come back later. When you're not here."

"You'll never get your hands on my son", Emma hisses.

"We'll see about that", Tamara answers, then fires the gun and jumps into the portal.

* * *

**I know it's not much for a start, but it screamed for a cliffhanger.**

**I'd say stuff like don't worry, but I won't because Emma just got shot in the chest and you should all be scared.**

**And you know what, I'll post the next chapter when I get... let's see, 5 reviews? That's really not much, and I like being cruel.**

**Bye!**


	2. chapter two

**Oh my God guys! Thank you for all the kind words, I didn't expect this to be such popular!**

**So, here's the next one, full of Captain Swan sweetness. Enjoy!**

* * *

Emma shouts in pain and collapses. There is something seriously wrong with the aching in her chest. She was shot two times before, once in the arm and once in the leg, but it never felt like this. She can't breathe. She can't even stand up, her whole body is on fire.

"Emma!"

Strong arms grab her and turn her to her back. She sees Hook's face above her, and he looks scared. No, not just scared. Afraid. _Terrified_.

"Your parents took Henry home", he tells her and she tries to nod. "Don't move now", he adds.

The look in his eyes makes her even more worried. She can feel as his shaking fingers unbutton her coat, it seems a hard thing to do with only one hand. He's not saying any innuendos about undressing her and that is also really weird. The world is upside down.

His expression turns from terrified to utterly confused.

Emma feels a rush of pain again. When it's gone, she tries to ask him something, and finally manages to whisper, "What is it?"

"Um…" he starts. "You're not bleeding."

She feels another wave, this time even more powerful. What the hell does that mean, she's not bleeding? She just got shot. Right?

Hook picks her up carefully, her head rests on his chest. She blacks out in a few seconds, doesn't even fight it.

* * *

Carrying Emma is a lot harder when she's out. She's not actually heavy or anything, but he can't get a good grip on her with his hooked hand and therefore is worried he might drop her. And the stairs that lead to her apartment! Bloody hell.

He holds her tight, then kicks in the door since he can't actually knock without a free hand, and he needs to hurry anyway.

Several voices shout Emma's name and someone steps in to take her from his arms. Hook gives the prince his daughter before saying, "Where's Henry?"

"I'm here", he says from behind. The lad's biting his lip anxiously. "What's happened? Tamara shot her, right?"

"What?" David snaps.

Hook puts a hand on Henry's shoulder. "She'll be fine", he says, because she _has to be_.

"What happened?" Snow asks as she helps David lay their daughter down on the bed. Emma's eyes are open and she's already trying to sit up.

"You should lay back and rest", Hook says, but his eyes are focused on David. "Tamara shot her with a gun, but she's not bleeding."

They all turn towards Emma. The paleness is starting to disappear from her face. She stands up but her legs fail her. Hook catches her before anyone else could and puts her back on the bed like she's some small child. The thought almost makes him smile.

"Told ya. You should rest."

"I'm fine", she hisses, but his arms keep her down. She's sitting on the edge of the bed and he's standing right above her. "No, you're not."

_Give me your hand. It's cut, let me help you._

_It's fine._

_No, it's not._

Her expressions are clear, she's thinking about the same scenario.

"So, why aren't you bleeding?" Henry asks, pushing the both of them back to reality.

* * *

"I don't know, kid", Emma answers.

"I think I do", Regina says in the background. Emma didn't even notice she was there but she finds herself relieved. Regina takes a deep breath then stands up from the dining table. Everyone steps aside and lets her go to Emma, except for Hook. He doesn't move an inch, only removes his hands – well, hand and hook – from her shoulders.

"May I?" Regina asks, and Emma nods yes. But to her surprise, it's not the non-existent wound she wants to see, but her eyes.

"You are cursed", she says slowly, looking into her right eye, then in the left. "I can barely see it, but I'm certain."

Emma swallows. "How the hell did Tamara get a magical… damn _curse-casting_ gun?"

"I have no idea", Regina answers as she straightens up. "But I guess we will know more about it in the morning."

"What if she'll be dead in the morning?" Hook snaps in an angry tone. Emma can't help but grab his hand to calm him down but her look is fixed on the other woman. "If she wanted me dead, she would've just killed me, right?"

Regina slowly nods. "It is a long-term curse as far as I can tell. Which means it is more powerful, but on the other hand, we will have plenty of time to find a way to remove it. Weeks, propably."

Emma keeps nodding at every sentence. "Alright. I'll find Gold tomorrow, first thing. But right now… I just need some sleep."

Her parents give her stressed looks before finally agreeing. Regina cleans her throat before saying, "I should propably go."

"Wait", Emma calls. A thought pops up in her head. "Is it possible that this curse… will change me? My behavior towards the people I –" she glances at Henry for a second, "the people I love?"

Regina blinks in uncertainty. "I have seen such thing, yes."

Emma nods. "Alright then. Kid, you're staying with Regina."

"But –"

"No arguments. We still have one magic bean. I could be the very one to take you to Peter Pan without even realizing it."

Regina puts her hands on the boy's shoulders. "We don't know that."

Emma smiles at that. "You agree with me."

"Well –"

"You do", she says, not looking up. "You agree that he should stay away until we find a solution."

"Yes, but –"

"No", Emma shakes her head, and she knows she had won this one. "Just take care of him. Please."

Henry runs to her to hug her one last time. Emma only notices how she's still holding Hook's hand. She lets go to embrace his son, and she leans into his hair. "It's okay, kid. Just a few days. I'm sure we'll come up with something. Plus", she adds quietly, "she's your mom, too."

"I know", he smiles. "I have more parents than anyone."

Emma returns his smile. And then he leaves with his mother – his _other_ mother. Emma takes a deep breath and stands up. Her head is still a bit dizzy but she refuses to accept Hook's helping hand. She's not that weak.

Her parents are standing at the edge of the bed. Snow wants to say something, it's written on her face.

"I'd say you should leave, too", Emma starts, and she sees her mother's face lighten up. She won't like the end of the sentence, "but I think it's better if I'm the one who leaves."

"What? No way, Emma –"

"I really don't want to bicker about this. Look, here's the thing. I don't know what this is, this damn spell Tamara cast on me, but it could be really bad. I'll sleep at the sheriff station, then tomorrow I'll go talk to Gold, and we can figure this out. But for now I just need you all to be safe."

Snow opens her mouth but then closes it. "Alright then."

Her tone is questioning and higher than usual, like every time she tries to cover how insecure or hurt she is. They share a brief look with David and then both of them nods.

"Are you going to be okay, Emma?"

"She will be", Hook speaks, stepping next to Emma. "I'm staying with her."

"Yeah, I'm sorry, but I really don't see how that is 'safe'", David says.

"And I don't see you asking me about it either", Emma adds.

Neither of them sees the look Snow gives Hook. He nods before turning back to Emma and saying, "If any of you noticed, I was not asking a question. I'm staying with you."

"Hook –"

"Don't think I'm taking my eyes off you for a second."

She gasps. He did that on purpose, she was sure about that. He keeps mentioning her of that damn beanstalk encounter. But well, two can play at a game.

"I would despair if you did", she snaps back, giving him a look.

David cleans his throat. Emma rolls her eyes and grabs her coat from the bed. It has a little hole on it right on the front. So Tamara did shoot her with something.

She checks her sweatshirt. Another hole. Is there actually something inside her body right now? Some magical thing that keeps poisoning her, or changing her into a different Emma?

She shakes her head. "Let's go then."

He follows her down the stairs and down the street, but he doesn't say a word.

"You know", Emma starts a few minutes later, "we spent ten hours on a beanstalk, and I can't remember a single moment when you weren't speaking. Except for the parts where you let me answer, of course."

They reach the station, and she searches for her keys before looking up at him. He doesn't look like he's going to answer anytime.

She stops for a second. "Why did you come back?" she asks finally. Her voice is quiet. They are alone on the street.

"Does it matter?" he asks back, taking the keys from her and opening the door without even looking away. She doesn't break the eye contact either, not when the door's already open. She feels like she couldn't look away even if she wanted to.

He leans a few inches closer. "You might want to go inside."

She blinks. "Yeah. Sure", she says before entering the building. It's a bit cold in there but it gives her a chill and pulls her back to the real world.

* * *

"So, is there any chance there's something to drink in here?"

Emma turns to him with one of her famous looks. She managed to make two bed-like things, one on the couch and one on the floor next to it. She turned the heating on, it's autumn after all, and now she only has her jeans and a black top on. He has to admit she looks good.

Him, on the other hand, only removed his boots and the leather jacket and starts to feel really heated. A drink, yes, that's exactly what he needs.

Emma sighs. "I guess we could find something."

"Rum?"

"In your dreams, sailor. But, if I'm right", she says, stepping to the cupboards in the corner, "There should be a bottle of scotch in here."

She stops looking for a second and stares.

"What is it?" he asks, stepping closer. She was searching on the shelf a moment ago, and now she's just looking at her hand. He reaches out for it and takes what she holds in his own hands. It's a badge, similar to the one she wears on her belt.

"It's a deputy's badge", she whispers, then cleans her throat and continues louder, "Anyway, there's some wine in here, if that's okay…"

"As long as it's not poisoned", he says, still looking at the badge. She takes it away and puts it back on the shelf. Her expressions have changed in a brief second. He keeps scanning her face as she takes two glasses.

"Do we need these?" she asks, trying to smile. He grabs the bottle and opens it with his hook.

"I suppose we don't."

She smiles and puts the glasses back. "Don't drink your ass off, please. We have to talk to Gold tomorrow, and if there's one thing I hate, it's a pirate with a hangover as my company."

"Does that mean you _like_ pirates without a hangover as your company?" he says, raising an eyebrow. She grabs the bottle and takes a sip. "I'm here with you, am I not?"

He can't help but smile. "Are you really flirting with me, Swan? Curse's working already."

Her face turns pale.

"Hey", he says, taking the bottle away a placing it on the desk before he grabs her chin with his hand. "It's going to be fine. We'll fix it."

"How do you know that?"

He sighs. Really, how does he know that? What if she'll finish him off by tomorrow? Or she'll run off just like that?

"I just know it", he says finally. "Because I believe in you."

She makes a sad smile but turns away and sits down on the couch. He follows her and hands her the wine. The corner of her mouth twitches as she takes another sip. "You should try it", she says. "It's not that bad."

He does as she says but can't take more than three sips. "You know, I think I'll stick with rum."

She laughs. She's actually laughing really loud and bites her lip to make herself stop but she really can't. He's never seen her so careless before and it makes him smile. He puts the wine down, very far from their reach and sits down next to her. She hasn't stopped laughing yet, actually, the moment she looks at his face, she continues even harder. She leans against his chest and tries to catch her breath. He doesn't even notice when he puts his hooked arm around her.

"I'm sorry", she says then. "I just…"

"Never mind. It's actually really good to see you laugh."

She leans a bit harder against him before noticing what she just did and pulling away.

"I don't know what's so funny. But it's really good to loosen up a bit, you know. I mean, Henry's completely safe with Regina, and I don't know how, but I know you won't le me do anything stupid because of this… curse."

"That's right, I won't."

"So I guess tonight is the closest to normal that I'll ever get."

Her smile is not enough to take away the meaning of her words.

"Wait a second", she says suddenly, before he could say something about breaking the curse in no time and her getting the life she deserves, "we'll meet Gold tomorrow."

"Aye, that we will."

"But you're… trying to kill him?"

He smirks to himself. He is, isn't he? But still, he hasn't actually thought of that since she was shot. The way they talk about him, the mysterious Mr Gold, it was easy to forget that he was actually Rumpelstiltskin – the Crocodile.

But why was it so easy?

"I, um –", he starts. "I guess I should stop with that."

She waits until he looks at her. "Why?" she asks. "It's not like I want you to kill him or anything, but it's really weird that you just give up on this revenge after… how much time exactly?"

"Three hundred years, give or take."

"Three hundred?!" she repeats. "How old are you?"

He gives her a look. "I just said. Three hundred."

"Give or take", she adds and he nods.

"No, but really, how old are you? Not counting those years where you… didn't age?"

"When I was in Neverland?"

She makes a look that says, 'Neverland, of course. Why didn't I see it before?'

He smiles at her and pulls her hair behind her ear before saying, "Around thirty, I guess. I lost count over the years."

* * *

His hand is still at her ear. She could barely hear her own breath because of her heartbeat. What the hell is happening?

Why is she leaning closer?

Why is he okay with that?

Their lips are inches apart when she pulls back. "We should sleep."

It's the wine, she tells herself, as he nods and stands up. It's the damn wine, she repeats, as he takes his vest off – with one hand! – and lays down on the floor, next to her. It's the damn wine and no one can tell her otherwise.

Still, when she lays down and looks at him, she sees him staring right up at her, and it's definitely not the wine.

"So why did you come back?" she asks.

He looks up at the ceiling and smiles. "You said I could be a part of something, and I guess I wanted to take the chance."

She smiles. "Well, the offer still lives."

Emma's slowly falling asleep, but she can still hear him say "Thank you, Emma."

* * *

**Liked it? Not so much? Tell me!**

**And well, next chapter will be up at another 5 reviews, because I am just like that.**


	3. chapter three

**Holy Hook! Seriously, you guys are so kind, reading your comments was the best thing ever, it meant so much to me.**

**And the story continues! I hope you will like this one too.**

* * *

Killian Jones wakes up with handcuffs on his right hand.

"What the bloody hell, Swan?" he shouts before he could even open his eyes. "Was that really necessary? I thought we bounded pretty good last night!"

He sits up and looks around. Emma is standing above him, a few feet away, her arms crossed, her face scares him.

"What are you doing here?" she asks.

"Emma, what –"

"What are you doing here, Hook? What am _I_ doing here?"

"Emma, listen up", he says, gesturing with his hook. "Just let me go, I really don't see what all this is about."

There's something on her face. Insecurity maybe? She seems surprised at the fact that he didn't drop any innuendos at her. She shakes her head and grabs the bottle from the table.

"What did we do?"

The look on her face really makes him think. What if it's the curse already? It's propably messing with her memories.

"You really don't remember, do you?" he asks her.

Emma looks at him in horror. _Oh my god_, she forms the words with her mouth. She looks like she's about to drop the bottle. "Did I… did we…?" She asks, making gestures with her arms.

"Emma, look at me", he tells her. _Have I told you a lie?_ "Do you really don't remember what happened last night?"

She puts the bottle down and covers her face with her hands.

"Emma."

"Just tell me one thing. Did anything happen between us?"

So this is what it was about?

He should say something like, _darling, you would remember that_, but he just can't.

"Gods, Emma, no!" he exclaims. "Nothing happened, okay? Absolutely nothing. I'm here to look after you."

"Why?" she whispers, sitting down next to him. She still looks incredibly scared. he reaches a hand for her face but then realizes it has a _hook_ on the end, so he decides not to.

"What's the last thing you remember?" he asks.

"I don't know", she shakes her head in disbelief. "I went to sleep. At home. Definitely not here."

She looks at him with a questioning, confused look.

"Will you let me go?" he asks slowly.

She gasps, "Yes, of course", she says and removes the cuffs.

He stands up and stretches. "Alright. What day is it?"

Emma takes a deep breath. "Wednesday", she says.

"No, it's not", he says. "It's Sunday. And we're going to see the Crocodile."

"What, so that you can kill him?" she grabs his arm.

"Emma", he starts. "You forgot about… a lot of things. So here's a heads up, I'm not going to kill him, we're going there because he needs to take a look at you, since you were cursed by Tamara yesterday, and I think we just figured that curse out."

She bits her lip. "So, I have no memories of the last four days?"

"Apparently."

She shakes her head again, "No way", she says, and pulls out her phone.

Killian puts his vest and jacket on as she dials a number and puts the phone to her ear. She's incredibly nervous, and her hands are shaking.

"Hey, Mary Margaret?" she says. "What's the date today?"

Killian hears Snow answer in a confused tone. "Give me the phone", he says. Emma looks at him in confusion, like, why the hell would she give him the phone?

"Do you even know how to –"

"Yes", he says sharply and takes the device from her hands. "Snow White?"

"Hook", so the answer. "What happened?"

"You can't just take my –" Emma starts.

Killian shakes his head towards her.

"Emma doesn't remember what happened in the last four days, that must be the curse", he tells Snow. He can hear her gasp at the very same time her daughter does. He reaches his hooked hand out for Emma and she accepts it. She leans to his chest and he embraces her with one hand.

"We have to take her to Gold", Snow says.

"Meet there in five", he answers. He takes the phone far from him and looks at the screen. "How do I –"

"Press the red button", Emma whispers. Her voice is weak.

He puts the phone in his pocket and hugs her with his other hand. "It's going to be okay, Emma. I promise. We will figure this out."

"Why am I hugging you?" she asks quietly. "I left you in Manhattan."

"That was a really cruel thing to do, lass. But apparently, I had a drive back here. I helped Tamara and Greg almost destroy the city, but then ended up helping you save it. Well, something like that. Point is, I wanted to leave town but came back in the end, which is a lucky thing since your lad needed saving. Too bad I wasn't fast enough to save you, too."

Emma sniffs.

"Hey, don't cry", he says, letting her go to see her face.

"I'm not", she answers, and she really is not. "You came back?"

He sighs. "We talked about it yesterday."

Emma's face darkens a bit. "Of course. I just don't remember."

"You will, when we break this bloody curse."

She grabs her sweatshirt and stares at the hole on the front of it. "I'm really sick of curses, you know."

"I can imagine."

* * *

The little bell rings as the two of them enter the shop. Snow, David, Regina and Gold are already there.

"Where's Henry, is he with Neal?", that is the first thing Emma asks. Snow feels her chest aching. She didn't actually realize how much she had forget, how much happened in the last few days.

"Honey", she starts, stepping to Emma. "I'm sorry, but… Neal's dead."

Her mouth opens in shock. "What", she says, it doesn't even sound like a question.

"Tamara shot him and he fell through a portal", she continues, hating the fact that she has to hurt her daughter this way. "You were there, you told us about it."

"When?" she asks. Snow doesn't fail to notice how she leans towards Hook for support.

"Two days ago", she answers.

Emma nods slowly. "So I was right about that bitch after all."

She takes a deep breath and hides her expressions in a moment. "Where's Henry then?"

"He's with Belle", Regina says. She takes a step closer and looks at Emma like she's examining her.

"Something's different about you", she says. She then turns towards Gold a bit, "Can you sense it?"

He nods, "Indeed. Your magical abilities seem to have weakened."

Emma's glance switches from one to another, "What? What does that mean, am I going back to normal?"

"Oh, you were never normal, dearie. But I suppose we could say that, too. See, your powers have grown in the last weeks, it was hard to miss. Now, what has happened, is the opposite."

"So I haven't forgotten anything, I'm just… going back in time?"

Regina gasps. "Is that even possible?"

They all look at Gold for answers. Snow reaches for Emma's hand and she grabs it.

"I believe it is", the old man says finally. "At first we need to figure out what Tamara used to cast a spell like this, especially when she lacks any kind of magical power – you could say she's normal – and then we find a way to break it."

At the last few words, he looks at Hook, but only for a brief second. Snow doubts anyone else noticed it.

* * *

It's been a tiring day. They spent searching in Gold's books and Emma is incredibly exhausted. Since she meant no harm to anyone, she moved back to the apartment, but she told Henry to stay at Regina's, and then Hook told her he's staying with her until they figure this out. Sometimes she caught herself glancing over him and trying to remember the previous days. What was it that made him come back? What did they talk about? And why is he still staying?

On the other hand, everyone keeps asking her questions about what happened before Wednesday. She seems to remember everything. But she fears it won't stay like that.

She sits at her desk and grabs a piece of paper. She writes herself a quick note before going to sleep.

* * *

**Tell me what you think! Is the game still on? Five**** more reviews and I'll post the next one!:)**


	4. chapter four

**Aaaaaand have another chapter, this time filled with a bit more Captain Swan! Hope you enjoy it as well!**

* * *

The first thing Emma notices in the morning is a little note next to her bed. It has _EMMA_ written on it, then _a.k.a myself_ right under that. Though she recognizes her own handwriting, it still seems weird.

The apartment seems to be empty. She picks up the note and opens it.

_Whatever you think the date is today, it isn't._

_It's the 21st of October. You were cursed by Tamara six days ago. Basically, you're going back in time._

_Greg and Tamara ran away. They want to take Henry to Peter Pan._

_Neal's dead. He's actually Gold's son, Baelfire. You went to Manhattan to find him, and he came to live in Storybrooke before Tamara killed him. I'm sorry._

_Regina's on your side. Henry's with her all the time._

_Hook is okay, too. You can trust him. He's actually helped a lot, you should thank him._

Emma sighs. This is propably a joke.

She puts the note in the drawer and stands up. She reaches for the phone and dials her mother.

"Emma, honey, you're awake?" she says on the other end.

"Yes", she answers. "Um, I apparently wrote myself a note that says I'm cursed?"

"Yeah, that saves the explaining we had to do every morning", Snow answers slowly. "I'm really sorry, honey. We're at the shop, trying to figure things out."

"Did we find anything in the last few days?" Emma asks, trying to process what she just read. _Neal's dead. Hook's helping. You're cursed. What a good morning, isn't it?_

"Well, you did find a good book two days ago, we're searching through that with your father as we speak. We are much closer to a solution than we were at the beginning."

"Here, look at this", Emma hears David saying.

"I'll jump in later", Emma says quickly. "Gonna get some breakfast first."

They say their goodbyes and she hangs up. The apartment is really silent without her parents, or without Henry. She yawns, puts the phone down and goes down the stairs to the kitchen.

Only to find Hook there.

And she definitely smells smoke.

"What the hell?" she runs down the last of the stairs, bypasses him and opens the oven. A wave of hot smoke hits her right in the face and she coughs. She turns it off and stands up. Her hands and her face are propably black.

"What are you doing?" she asks, but she can't help her smile. He's wearing a simple, grey-blue t-shirt and jeans, she recognizes they are from David. He looks too casual without any jewelry or weapons.

"I'm sorry", he says. "One day I'll figure that thing out."

Emma points at the oven. "You mean, you do that every morning?"

"Aye", he nods. "And you help me every time."

"That must be weird."

He laughs and leans to the kitchen counters. "It's not. I know you never remember the previous time."

"But it's still weird. Thinking that I've done this before."

"We even had the same conversation yesterday. But I really don't mind."

He crosses his arms. There is something unusual about them.

She grabs his left hand. "What the –"

Killian just keeps smiling at her as she runs her fingertips across his skin, staring at his hand like it's some kind of miracle.

"The Crocodile", he says. "He gave it back. Said I might need it."

Suddenly, she feels stupid. "Do I do that every day, too?"

He shakes his head. "I only got it back yesterday. Cooking with a hook was really hard, actually."

Emma nods. She turns his palm and touches the scar around his waist.

"And it still… works?" she asks.

He raises an eyebrow. "Would you like to find out, lass?"

She looks up at him – and bursts out in laughing. The look in his eyes, the way he smiles, it's just too much.

Killian laughs with her and she lets go of his hand. She tries not to yawn again.

"So, what's for breakfast, Captain?"

* * *

Killian's actually really proud of himself. He managed to crack the bloody eggs, like Emma taught him, and even though she doesn't remember, she also taught him how to make an omelet. He still needs to work on the lunch, like baking a whole chicken for example, but he did make some great breakfast.

"It's really good, actually", Emma tells him. "I'm serious, even I couldn't do it better, and that's something."

"You're an expert in omelets", he says, pointing at her with the fork. "I know."

"Did I tell you that before?"

He gives her a smile and – she blushes?

He can't lie to himself, he likes the affect he has on her. They had talked many times in the previous days, and even if she doesn't know about them, he feels how her trust is growing. But a blush?

"You taught me how to make these things", he says. She bites her lip and turns back to her plate.

He reaches out his hand to grab hers. It's unusual to use that hand for kind things like this, he was used to killing people with the hook he had there. And now he has fingers, made out of warm flesh, and he caresses her hand gently.

He almost forgot what gently meant, but then Emma came into his life.

"It's not your fault", he says. "You forget about yesterday, and the day before, but it doesn't really matter. We'll find a solution, and until then, I enjoy talking to you like this."

She sighs but doesn't pull his hand away. "But what if I go back… too much? If I forgot who you are, or my parents, or…"

She swallows. She tries so hard not to think about that, he can see it.

"Henry?" he asks. Emma nods.

Killian takes a deep breath. "When was the last time we met? As you can remember?"

She blinks a few times. "At the hospital. You were hit by a car. I asked you about Cora, then you asked me about Jell-O."

He smiles at the memories. "Did you trust me back then?"

She tilts her head. "Well… not so much. I mean… I don't know."

"Do you trust me now?"

Emma looks him right into the eye. "Yes", she says.

He pulls his hand back and gives her a smile. "You see? Maybe you don't remember what we've been through since then, but something made you trust me. And if you happen forget who I am, I will be glad to introduce myself to you every morning."

* * *

Emma feels something warm inside her chest. He's right, something has changed. In her point of view, it's been a day since she saw him at the hospital. She has some blank memories of Gold telling her to help him find his son. So that's when they went to Manhattan.

She needs to add Hook being in the hospital to that note.

"How much do I forget by one night?" she asks out of the sudden. A thought starts to form in her head.

"Five or six days, why?"

"Have I ever been up until midnight?"

"No –"

"Alright, I need to call Mary – I mean, my mother."

She stands up and pick up the phone from the bar. Her mother's number is the first in the list.

"Emma, what –"

"I have an idea", she answers him. Her mother picks up a second later.

"Emma, is everything okay?"

"Yes, of course", she says. "I just had a thought."

"What is it?"

She takes a deep breath and glances at Hook – Killian – for a second. "What is it exactly that makes me forget?"

"I don't… I don't know."

"Okay, is Regina there?"

She hears her mother sigh then call for Regina.

"Emma, what is it?" she takes the phone. It's weird how she calls her _Emma_ and not _Miss_ _Swan_. When did that change?

"Do we know what makes me forget?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well", she takes a breath, "every midnight I just go a few days back in time, or what?"

"Um", Regina sounds a bit confused. "I'm not sure. You haven't mentioned it before."

Emma cleans her throat.

"I mean", Regina adds, "there are many ideas you come up with every day, but this is something new, and we haven't thought about it before."

"How about we make a test?"

"A test?" Snow asks in the background.

"A test", Emma repeats. "I'll stay up until midnight and we see what happens."

"That's actually very good", Killian tells her. She nods with a smile.

"Gold says it could work", Snow yells at the other end.

"We'll keep looking", Regina adds.

"We're coming, too", Emma answers before hanging up. She runs upstairs and writes two more things to her note. She sighs as she read it again. _You should thank him._

She goes downstairs and grabs her coat. Killian already has a jacket on, another from David's closet.

"Thank you", she tells him.

"For what?"

"Everything."

* * *

**So, how was it? Leave a review!**

**I'll post chapter five tomorrow!**


	5. chapter five

**Here we go! I really hope you guys will like this one:)**

* * *

Emma sits on the edge of her bed. It's two hours left until midnight, and she doesn't feel tired at all. Usually, this is the time she'd go to sleep. She had at least five cups of coffee earlier at Granny's, she's definitely not going to fall asleep tonight.

She pucks up the note from her desk and reads it a few times. Then she opens it. There's another sentence, written with smaller letters, she wrote it in the morning. She keeps staring at the words, tries to realize what they mean, but her head becomes dizzy. She takes a deep breath. She'll propably forget about it the next day, and the sentence will still be there, but it's actual meaning will be lost to her.

But whoever she will be in the morning, that person needs to know it.

As Hook enters the room, she writes another sentence under the first one, then hides the note in her drawer. When it's over, she'll figure it all out. She stands up.

"Are you okay?" he asks. He looks so unusual with casual clothing on, having both of his hands. It's like he was part of the curse that brought everyone to Storybrooke, and he is part of their lives now. He is just Killian Jones.

What if she wakes up the next morning and she won't remember him?

She glances at the drawer for a second before saying, "Yeah. I'm fine. Bit of scared, but I'm okay."

He gives her a smile, warm and encouraging, as he steps closer. "We'll figure this out."

"How many times have you told me that?" she whispers, staring at her own hands. "What if one day I just won't believe it? What if I go back so far that I won't know who any of you are? I thought I found a family and now it's slowly drifting away and there's nothing I –"

"Hey, shhh", he leans in and holds her in his arms. She hadn't realized she started crying.

His hand caresses her hair, his other arm is around her shoulders, she feels the tip of his nose buried in her neck as her arms find their way around his waist, and she knows what she had just written on the note is all true.

* * *

He slowly lets go of her, even if he doesn't want to. He wipes her tears away with his fingers and she closes her eyes.

"Your parents made some tacos", he says. "Whatever those things are."

She laughs, but her eyes are still sad.

"We're all staying up with you. See what happens at midnight."

Emma gasps. He can't help but hugs her one more time, just holds her tight. "Look, Emma. It may take some time, but we'll find a way eventually. It's only been a week and we made good progress. If there's anything I learned from you and your family in the past few days is that good always wins. And you're good."

She buries her face in his shirt and takes a deep breath. He wants to stay this way but her parents are really waiting downstairs, and he doesn't want to answer questions.

"Come on", he says and lets go, this time fully, only their hands are touching.

She nods. "Can you tell me about the previous days?" she asks as they approach the stairs. She can see her family in the kitchen, preparing for the night like it's just a party or something. "What I was like, what I did", she adds, looking up at him coming after her.

"Of course."

* * *

"_No, you're doing it wrong!" she says, laughing. She takes the egg from him and cracks it. "See? You have to be careful with it."_

"_That seems really easy to do, lass – with two hands."_

"_Well, maybe you should tell Gold to give your hand back. Given that you're not trying to kill him, it would be an amazing start of a friendship."_

_He laughs at the thought. She cracks another egg then looks up at him._

"_I'm serious. It's worth a try."_

_Killian shakes his head. "What, should I just walk into the shop and go all 'Yo, Crocodile, you got something of mine and I want it back'?"_

"'_It might come in handy sometime'", she adds, trying to copy his accent. He bursts out laughing._

"_Alright, you gotta work on that, Swan."_

"_We'll have plenty of time, right?"_

_Emma hands him the last egg, and he bites his lip as he cracks it on the side of the plate. She helps him with her left hand and they slowly open it._

"_Perfect", she says with a smile. "Wow, I'm teaching Captain Hook how to crack an egg."_

"_You should feel honored."_

_She pokes him with her elbow. "I am. I just won't remember it."_

_He sighs. "Tell you what. Maybe tomorrow you won't, but one day you will. And we'll have a good laugh mentioning it up." _

"_Telling old stories at the fireplace", Emma adds, this time with a voice that sounds like Snow's._

"_Bedtime stories for the grandchildren, you know", he answers. She starts laughing so hard she has to lean against the bar. They keep laughing, then trying to stop it, then looking at each other and starting it all over again._

_She takes a few slower breaths to calm herself down before asking, "Do you have kids?"_

_He blinks. "Do I look like I have any?"_

"_Well, you're… you know. Nothing, I'm sorry."_

"_It's fine", he says as he steps to the sink to wash the last of eggs off his hook. "I could have some, I guess. I don't know."_

_She nods. "Henry likes you, you know."_

_Killian smiles at it. "He's a great lad. Reminds me of Bae when he was young."_

_He looks back at her after realizing what he just said. "Emma, I didn't mean to –"_

"_Um, no, it's fine. It's weird to know he's… dead, and that I was there. I only wish I'd remember what I said to him, if there was anything. You know there were things I wish he knew about."_

_He nods._

"_But really", she adds. "It's fine."_

* * *

"The first day you chained me to a table", he says, the corner of his mouth twitches up as he remembers. They are sitting at the dining table with two glasses of champagne, her parents are playing something with Henry. Regina is still at the shop, though it's half past eleven.

Emma leans closer, "Really?"

"Aye", he nods. "We had a really friendly conversation you know, and then I wake up and – the bloody handcuffs again."

"You must be really sick of them."

"Damn right I am. But that's not the point, you see, we didn't know what the whole curse was about back then, and you said you want your family safe, so we went to sleep at the sheriff station."

"We?" she asks. "How did we become so big friends?"

"Well, to be honest, you said you'll go to the sheriff station and I said I'm coming with you, whatever you say."

"That sounds a lot more like you."

He nods.

"But really, what happened before that?" she asks. There is something inside of her that makes her trust him, and she doesn't understand.

"What makes you so curious?"

"I don't know, I'm trying to figure things out", she says. "I wrote myself a note with important stuff, so that I know what's up, and it's kinda weird that it has 'You can trust Hook' written on it, without an explanation. I want to hear the explanation."

He takes a sip from his champagne and grins. He clearly doesn't like it. Her thoughts wander about his bottle of rum, the one he used to clear her wounds with, but then it hits her that it's another vulnerable, soon-to-fade memory, and she didn't want to go there.

"Explanation, huh?"

She nods.

"Well, um. Tamara and Greg told me to help them destroy the city with Regina's self-destruct crystal, and I agreed. But then I realized killing the Crocodile is a stupid thing to die for, and I came here to tell you about their plans. Long story short", he says, pulling out a small, crystal-like bean from his pocket, "you could have escaped with this, but instead you chose to send the self-destruct through the portal and try to save the city. It was not a sure plan, so I took the bean and ran. By the time I changed my mind and came back, you already saved the town."

"And that's when I got cursed."

"Yeah, around that time."

She sighs. The way he talked about what he did, there was so much self-hatred in those sentences. She grabbed his hand above the table, and the words she wrote on her note started twirling around in her head. She won't remember this. She'll forget about all of it, and ask him again, tomorrow. And the day after that, and the day after that, and she hates it.

Soon she will forget about him, too, and the thought scares her.

"Hook, there's something I –"

"Wait", he says, standing up. "It's midnight."

"What?" she jumps up too and stares at the clock. Just like everyone else.

She counts the seconds, one by one.

It's past midnight.

And nothing happens.

* * *

**So, what did you think?**

**I really like to keep you guys waiting. The next one comes on Wednesday, because I am just like that.**


	6. chapter six

**I'm soooooo sorry for not being able to update yesterday. Therefore you get two chapter today.**

**And also apologies because there are some type of scenarios I just can't write properly. (NO IT'S NOT WHAT YOU THINK OMG)**

* * *

"Emma", Killian whispers. She turns to her other side and pulls her right leg up. "Emma, wake up. Come on darling, rise and shine", he keeps saying, trying to wake her up. They've been up until three, but she was so tired by that time she almost fell asleep standing. He just put her in his arms and carried her upstairs. She didn't tell him what she wanted to say and he didn't force. He'll ask her again, when she remembers.

She turns again and opens her eyes, then closes them, and blinks a few more times.

The moment she focuses on his face she's fully awake. She jumps up in horror and crawls away a bit, like a scared animal. "What are you doing here?" she yells.

He raises his hands. "It's okay, Emma, everything's fine."

"How did you escape?" she asks, then looks around. "How did I escape? We were –"

"Emma!" her mother shouts in the doorway and runs to her. "Emma, what happened?"

"How did we get home?" Emma asks her mother. "We were in the Forest, right, the Enchanted Forest!"

Her father arrives in the meantime and starts, "Emma, you need to calm down –"

Emma covers her face with her hands. "What the hell happened?!"

"Where's the note?" Snow asks. "Honey, you wrote yourself a note to read every morning, and –"

"A note? What, like I have some freaking amnesia?"

"Alright, everybody calm down", Hook says, raising his hands. "Go, find the note", he tells her parents. "I got this."

Emma throws a pillow at him. "Don't come near me!"

But he doesn't really give a damn, he kneels next to the bed where she sits and grabs her hands.

She looks like she's about to scream but luckily, she doesn't.

"Where's my son?" she says. It sounds like a command.

"He's completely fine."

"I don't believe you."

"Well, you should."

Emma hakes her head. "What happened?" she whispers, not looking at him.

"What is the last thing you remember?"

* * *

"So I'm cursed? That sounds actually really stupid."

And it does. Hell, it really does.

"Emma, look at me."

_Have I told you a lie?_

She looks at him.

"Emma, I know it sounds weird, but you trust me. You tell that to me everyday, even if you forget about it, you should feel it."

"I left you up a the beanstalk", she whispers. "That was yesterday."

"That was weeks ago", he says. "And a lot of things happened since then."

She shakes her head.

"Use your ability, Emma. You said you can tell when I'm lying, so look at me and say it, am I lying?"

Emma takes a breath and looks him right in the eye, first time that morning.

"No", she says finally. "You're not. I believe you."

"Come on then", he says. "We'll tell you the whole story."

* * *

He hates to think about it, but she was right. She slowly forgets about him, then about everyone else. And they are far from a solution.

Or they thought so.

"I did it!" Regina says, bursting in the door. She drops her coat to the hanger and runs to the kitchen.

"This is really weird", Emma says, pointing at her.

"Sorry about that", Regina responds with an apologizing smile, "but yesterday got me thinking."

David and Snow stop the dishwashing they were doing since half an hour and stare at her. Killian steps next to Emma to hear the other woman's words.

"We stayed up long yesterday, right?" Emma says, and Killian nods. He told her about what happened in the previous days, but tried to leave out their conversations. He doesn't fail to notice how he's the one she stands the closest to all the time, but everything she says to him sounds different. She has her walls up again, and breaking them down will be harder and harder everyday.

"I figured the forgetting progress might have to do something with your sleeping", Regina says, taking off her gloves and putting them in her pocket. Then, she pulls out a small bottle. It's filled with something that looks like a potion.

"This", she says, holding it to Emma, "will help you stay up. Take a sip every evening and you'll be up all night. It will spare the explaining, and we can practice on your magic, too."

"My magic?" she asks in confusion, and takes the bottle from Regina slowly.

"Well, the point of this curse is to forget who you really are and prevent you from doing magic. Gold and I think, that in two weeks, you will already forget about Henry, and that's when they come back."

"They didn't count you in then, I guess", Emma says. "I mean, you'd rip everyone who tries to harm Henry in pieces."

"Yes I would", she answers. "But that doesn't break your curse."

Emma's mouth opens slowly as she doesn't know what to say. Killian strikes her elbow from behind to give her confidence, and it seems to work.

Emma gasps. "Thank you", she says finally. "Seriously, thanks a lot."

Regina smiles at her. "We'll do the best we can. However, that potion is only enough for a week. I should propably go and make more. Oh, and Henry's okay. He spends a lot of time with Belle lately, they seem to have fun."

"Did you work on this all night?" Emma asks, holding up the potion. Regina slowly nods.

"You should get some sleep, really", she tells her. "We have time, especially now that I won't keep forgetting about stuff."

"Alright."

Regina grabs her coat and is ready to leave. The moment the doors closes behind her, Killian cleans his throat.

"I'll be back in a moment", he tells them and goes after her. Snow and David just nod and keep glancing at the bottle, trying to figure out the potion in it.

Emma looks at him for a brief second, "Wait, where are you going?"

"It's okay, lass. I'll be right back."

* * *

He reaches Regina on the street. He doesn't quite know how to call her though. But he doesn't have to figure it out, because she stops and turns to face him.

"Can I help you?"

He takes a deep breath. "Aye. How much time does it take to make that potion?"

She shrugs. "Few hours should be enough, why?"

"Maybe you could make me another one."

"And why would I? I agreed to help Emma, not you. As I heard, you were willing to let me die in order for you to escape."

He looks away. This really isn't going well. He's not going to threaten her, he knew that the moment he decided to come after her.

"It's your lucky day, Hook", she says, quoting herself from a week ago. "I'll make that potion for you, it'll be done by tonight."

"Why?" he asks.

She takes a breath and looks away. "The same reason you're not threatening me to make it. I guess we both are making a good progress."

* * *

Emma picks up another heavy book and puts it on the table. "Let's see then", she murmurs. She's in the backside, the others are all in the front. She wonders why Hook – or should she say Killian? – hadn't check on her already. He never seems to keep his eyes off her.

The book is full with magical animals, like dragons, or something called the Yaoguai.

"Dude, you're ugly", she says, looking at the picture of the beast. She closes the book and puts it back to it's place.

"Emma!" her mom calls. "Your phone!"

She makes her way to the shop and sees her whole family, plus Killian, staring at her. Her mother holds her phone in her hands.

"What is it?" she asks. No one seems to answer her, so she grabs the phone and puts it to her ear. "Who's this?"

"Emma?"

"Yeah, it's me, but who's there?"

"Where are you?"

The voice is really familiar, but it can't be. She hadn't heard that voice in ten years, and besides, everyone told her he was dead…

"I'm at the shop", she says finally, "Gold's shop."

"We'll be there in five."

"We?" she asks back but he hangs up.

She stares at the phone.

"It was Neal, right?" her mother asks, looking at her like she wants to make sure she's not crazy for hearing a dead person's voice. Though for Emma it's weird enough that Snow would recognize his voice.

"It was him", Emma says. Then the door opens and there he is, with a knight, a princess and a warrior behind him.

"Aurora? Mulan?" Snow asks in surprise. She hugs them tight and starts asking questions while Emma keeps staring at Neal.

He hasn't changed a bit.

"Neal", she says.

"Emma", he answers.

She hates him for what he did and why he did it – because her parents told her the story with August – and she doesn't want to see him at all. But he was dead, and now he's back, and all she can do is jump into his arms.

* * *

Killian clenches his fists. The man standing there, hugging Emma doesn't really remind him of Baelfire. And he propably doesn't really want to see him at all. After all, he stole her mother away, and so on. He's the pirate, the villain.

"Hook", says Bae – Neal – after he lets go of Emma. "It's odd to see you in the same room as my father."

They only notice the look Gold gives his son, it's very similar to Emma's, but clearer. He steps to his only son, his Baelfire. Neal gives him an agreeing smile and they hug.

Everybody's damn hugging.

David walks over to him as the others are telling their stories. Emma seems a bit lost, but her mother's hand finds hers and they share a smile as they listen to the knight – Philip.

"This is what she meant, you know", David says.

"What do you mean?" he asks back, still keeping his eyes on Emma.

"When Emma said you could be a part of something. This is what she meant. We're one big family after all."

"The most bloody complicated family I've ever seen, I assure you", he replies.

"Yeah. But you know what, mate? Either way, you're part of it."

And he leaves to join his wife before Killian could say anything.

He's just about to go to Emma when Neal steps to her. It's like they are standing in the middle of a circle, and slowly, every eye focuses on them.

"Emma", Neal starts. "I was hoping we could talk."

"Yeah, sure", she says, but doesn't move an inch. Killian can't help it but grin. That's his Swan.

"Right here? Okay", Neal replies, gasping. "So, about what happened at the portal –"

"Portal?" she asks back with a surprised expression.

"Yeah, you know, when I was shot, and fell through a portal?"

She shakes her head. "Oh, about that. That's how you… died, I guess. Well, I don't exactly… remember."

It partially sounds like a question.

"You don't remember?"

"She's under a curse your fiancé put on her", Snow says suddenly. "She keeps going back in time."

"But we'll figure it out", Emma adds with a half smile. Like she says, _eh, just a curse, no big deal_.

"A curse?" Neal asks. Emma nods slowly.

"Then we need to break it", he says and gives her a smile. Emma looks like she's about to ask something but she's cut off by him.

Neal holds her chin and gives her a kiss.

And that is when Killian leaves the shop.

* * *

"No, Neal, just don't, okay?" Emma says, pulling away. She really doesn't feel comfortable with his hand on her chin. He looks confused. "I don't know what happened at the portal, but don't do this."

"You said you loved me, that's what happened", he says.

Emma bites her lip. She can imagine that pretty well. If he was dying.

"I do love you", she says. "But not like this."

He lets go of her and steps back. "Alright", he says finally. "Though I figured that when the curse didn't break."

"I'm really sorry", she says. "Henry needs his father, okay? And your dad needs you. But you and I… just doesn't seem right."

He puts a hand behind his head, "Well, that's a bit awkward."

She takes a deep breath a looks around, just to see everyone staring at them. "You should go see Henry. He's at Granny's with Belle and Ruby, he misses you like hell."

He nods slowly and turns to go, but turns back after a moment and looks at his father.

"Would you like to come with me?"

Gold seems unsure.

"Come on, Papa, we have a lot of catching up to do", Neal tells him and makes a gesture with his hand.

Aurora, Mulan and Philip look a bit lost after the two of them leave.

"We should propably visit Belle, too", Mulan says after a few moments. "I haven't seen her in ages."

"It's been twenty-eight years", Philip adds. "Come, my love, let me introduce you to the very person who saved me from Maleficent."

Aurora nods and looks at Emma and Snow. "Would you like to come with us?"

"I'll take a look at these books", Snow says, but David grabs her hand.

"We've had enough for today. Right, Emma?"

Emma nods. "Seems like we found a way to slow down the curse. We can keep going later. Well, at least I have all night."

"We'll be honored to help you any way we can", Aurora smiles. Emma had almost forgotten how much she missed them around.

"Where's Hook? He was here a few minutes ago", Mulan says, looking around.

Panic runs through Emma's veins and she doesn't even know why.

"He propably went home", she says. She looks at her mom and they share a look.

"We have to find him."

* * *

**Tell me what you think!**

**I'll post chapter sevenin the afternoon, but I fear you have to wait a week until the very last chapter. Let's see if you can survive:)**


	7. chapter seven

**To be honest, this one's bit of a filler, but I like it anyway. There's important stuff going on.**

**I hope you will like it too!**

* * *

"Where the hell are you?" Emma whispers to herself. They searched the whole town, the docks, the mines, his ship, everywhere. She sits on the couch in her apartment and stares at the wall. The last time she saw him was when Neal entered the shop. Did he leave because of him? Because he thought she doesn't need him anymore?

She wishes she would know what happened in the last few days. She wishes she remembered when he was at the hospital, or when he helped them. What exactly they talked about. She wishes she could figure him out.

And she wishes he would just walk in the door.

And he does.

She jumps up and runs to him, "Where the hell have you been?" she yells. "We looked everywhere for you!"

Everyone runs to the living room to see what all the yelling is about but Emma doesn't care.

He seems to be okay, no blood, no wounds, his clothes aren't ripped.

"I just needed to take care of something", he says. "And I didn't want to watch cheesy reunions."

Emma shakes her head but no matter how hard she tries to stop it, tears come to her eyes.

"You idiot", she whispers and steps closer to hug him. "I thought you were freaking dead, or kidnapped, or –"

"I'm fine", he says, pulling away. But when he sees her face he frowns. "But as I see, you're not."

"Of course I'm not, I was worried", she says.

"No, I mean you're still cursed."

She sniffs. "You thought you leave for a few hours and the problem is already solved?"

"No, but… Nevermind. I got something", he says.

"Wait", Emma says. "Promise me you won't disappear again."

"Alright, but –"

"No, really. Promise me."

He stares down at her for a moment. "I promise", he says, then pulls out a bottle, filled with the exact same potion that's in Emma's closet.

She feels a smile run across her face.

"Is that yours?" she asks.

He nods. "We don't want you to get bored, do we?"

* * *

"You're getting better", Regina says. "A bit of focus is needed on the movements, but it's actually very impressive."

Emma smiles and tries again. Magic fills her every vein and every cell. She only needs to feel it. She feels safe, she feels calm. She thinks about Henry and lets the magic take over.

The wall in front of her starts cracking up, and it's only dust in a few seconds.

She spent the whole night on Killian's ship. He taught her how to steer it, how to handle the sails and everything. She feels safe with him, and safety is exactly what she needs.

Nothing happened between them, he didn't even touch her unless it was necessary, and that's okay.

"Now build it up", Regina says.

Emma lets her thoughts wander about Killian instead of Henry this time, but just this one time. Dust rises from the ground and the wall is back up again in a moment.

"Great", Regina says. "I think it's enough for today. Emma nods and they start walking to Granny's, where they are supposed to meet Henry and Neal.

* * *

"_Oh my God, it's moving!" Emma says, as she steps on board._

_Killian smiles as she raises both her hands like she was trying to keep her balance. Part of him wants to hold her hand and help her, but he doesn't. Instead, he walks to the helm._

"_You've travelled with her before", he says, "though you don't remember. It was propably Bae who steered her, or maybe your lad."_

"_Henry?"_

"_Well, I can imagine his father showing him how to steer my ship."_

_Emma puts her hands down and walks up next to him. "Did you teach him? Neal, I mean."_

"_Aye. It was many years ago though. Haven't seen him since."_

_He shows her how to hold the helm and they switch places._

"_How do we leave the shore?" she asks._

"_Just watch."_

* * *

"Mom?" Henry asks, at least for the third time.

"What?" Emma shakes her head. "Sorry, I thought you were talking to – nevermind, I have to get used to this."

Regina and Henry laugh at her. It was the oddest idea really, to have lunch with the three of them, but none of them could talk Henry out of it. He wanted lunch with his parents.

At least he didn't invite his grandparents.

"So, how long will it take?" Henry asks her.

"I really don't know, kid. Sometimes I feel like the end's really close, but then I realize we don't even know how to break this curse. We have to prepare for Tamara's and Greg's arrival."

"Oh, I'd really like them to come back", Neal says. "I'd like to say a few words to her."

Emma raises her eyebrow. "Thought you were over her."

"That doesn't mean she can threaten my son."

She bites her lip. "Sure. But you have to admit I was right about her."

"You had a good guess."

She wants to snap back, but he's smiling.

"Think you're funny, huh?" she asks.

* * *

"_So he hates you?" Emma asks, looking back over her shoulder. She's the one to steer the ship, he only tells her what to do, and it feels really good. Though the ship's moving beneath her, she knows she's in control._

"_I don't know", he answers, keeping an eye on the horizon instead of her._

"_You should talk to him. I mean, aren't you some sort of stepfather to him?"_

"_Never understood these crazy family member titles you give each other", he says, shaking his head. She laughs and turns back to the front._

"_How can you see anything when it's so dark?" she asks. She doesn't really want to change the subject, but Killian clearly doesn't want to talk about Neal, or Gold, and especially not Milah and anything that has something to do with families._

"_Look for the stars", he tells her. "They can guide any sailor."_

"_I'm not really a sailor, so that means I'd rather be looking for, you know, earth and such", she answers._

"_We're quite far from earth", he says. "Aren't you tired? It's been three hours since we left shore."_

"_Three hours? I'm steering this thing since three hours?"_

"_You're steering _her_ since three hours", he corrects. "Would you like to go back?"_

_She sighs. "Not really."_

* * *

Regina agrees to take Henry home, since he has some sword-fight practice to do with David, and that leaves Emma alone with Neal.

He walks her to her apartment and she tries to make a conversation.

"I have… propably asked you this before", she starts, "but, what do you think of him?"

"Who?"

"Well, Henry of course."

Neal smiles. Who else could she mean?

"He's a lot like you. Tough little kid, and he seems to like me. It's really weird to know that I have a son, but he's really great."

Emma smiles too, just like every time someone mentions Henry.

"He needs us to be a family, you know", he adds.

"Yeah. But that doesn't mean –"

"No, Emma, I get it. Really", he says, opening the door for her. "It's just, we need to stick together."

"I know", she says before walking up the stairs. "I know."

* * *

"_What happened then?" she asks, and she can't stop laughing._

"_Well, I pointed my sword at him and said, 'Mate, that's really not what I came here for.'"_

_Emma almost chokes on her rum. She leans against the wooden wall and pulls her legs up. They are sitting on the floor in his cabin, and he's telling her stories. Stories about what happened to him when he was younger, and she can tell they all happened before he met Milah._

"_Can I ask you something?"_

"_You just did, lass."_

"_But, another one."_

_He takes another sip before continuing to scan her with his eyes. She can never exactly tell what color his eyes are, sometimes they look grey like the storm, sometimes blue like the sky, then green like the sea. Maybe all three together. Dangerous storm, endless sky, calming sea._

"_Ask away."_

_Emma takes a deep breath._

"_What happened after I left you up at the beanstalk?"_

"_Well, that's quite a long story, Emma."_

"_I'd like to hear it anyway. We have all night after all, don't we?"_

* * *

"Emma!" her mother says as she enters the apartment, pushing her out of her memories. "Hook was looking for you, I told him to look for you at Granny's, didn't you meet?"

"Um, no", she shakes her head. "He must've gone to the docks. I'll go look for him."

"He said something about leaving", Snow says, which makes Emma turn.

"What did he say?"

"Well, I just mentioned that you went to have lunch with Neal and Henry and –"

Of course. She forgot to tell her parents she invited Regina too.

"…and he was gone, just like that."

"Alright, I have to talk to him."

"Emma, wait!" her father calls from the kitchen. "We found your note."

She really doesn't have the time but takes the paper anyway and reads it.

And then reads it again.

How comes she hadn't seen it before?

"Okay, I have to find him", she says and rushes out.

She needs to find him _right now_.

* * *

**Alright, mates, there's only one left! I'll be back in a week and you can all read it. I hope you'll be satisfied with the ending.**


	8. chapter eight

**Welcome back, guys! Here we have the final chapter, I**** really hope you'll be satisfied with it! Yay!**

**There's a scene that was actually based on the _Silver Linings Playbook_, you'll recognize it. If you don't, then go watch that movie. It's awesome.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Emma runs down the street, faster than she ever imagined she would run. She tries to catch her breath but doesn't slow down, not for a second. She needs to reach him.

Because she was right, whenever she wrote that note, she was right.

What else would make him leave her just like that? After everything they've been through?

* * *

"_You were really good with a sword, you know", he says. "It was a fair fight. Though I'm over three hundred years old, which means I had some practice."_

"_Three hundred?!" she asks in shock. "You look good, you know."_

_He smirks. "I know. However, after I managed to knock the sword out of your hand, you still attacked me."_

"_That sounds like me."_

_He laughs and takes another sip. "Oh, it does. You knocked me out with the compass actually."_

_It's her turn to laugh. She can imagine the scene, them fighting in the sand, next to a portal._

"_I might have said a few things that could have been misunderstood", he adds. "But it was fun, actually."_

"_Fun?" she repeats, raising her eyebrows. "Since when is a swordfight 'fun'? Oh wait, wait, I know, since you kept throwing innuendos at me the whole time."_

_He smirks and she bites her lip._

"_I can't help it, beautiful", he says, shaking his head. "Seriously, you should try it sometime."_

"_Fighting with myself or saying inappropriate things all the time?"_

"_Both", he says with a wink. She drinks from her bottle then leans closer to him._

"_And then what happened?"_

"_Well, I don't know. You knocked me out, you see."_

"_Did it hurt?"_

_He nods. "Like hell."_

"_I'm sorry."_

"_Don't be", he smiles. "You should apologize though, for leaving me behind all the time."_

"_Do I really do that?"_

_This time it's him who bites his lip. "Well…" he starts, gesturing with the bottle, "It seems like that, to me."_

"_All the time?" she asks and pulls her leg beneath herself. "Wasn't there just… I don't know, just one time, where I didn't?"_

_He sighs. "Don't be so hard on yourself, I propably would've done the same."_

"_Actually, I don't think so."_

_His face changes for a second, it's almost impossible to notice. "You did find me on the side of road after I got hit by a car", he says. "I thought you wouldn't notice me there, but you did."_

* * *

"Killian!" she yells from the distance. His ship is still at the docks, but she can't see him anywhere. She continues running.

* * *

"_You kept asking me about Cora, looked all bossy and stuff, it was nice. But at some parts I thought you actually cared."_

"_Of course I cared", she says immediately. "I mean, I'm sure I cared. I must have."_

_He gives her a brief smile but doesn't look at her. She doesn't know how much they've had, propably a whole bottle of rum. It made her think funny things, things she would never think about if she was sober. Or would she?_

"_And then", he continues with a grin, "you left like you just won a fight. You should've seen your face when I walked in the waiting room later."_

"_How did you escape those cuffs?"_

"_First thing you asked back then. I said it's because I'm a pirate, but actually, I asked a friendly nurse to remove them."_

"_You know, I'll remember this one, and you'll pay for it."_

"_Can't wait, darling."_

_And they keep laughing for minutes._

"_So you escaped", she continues when she can breathe properly. "Why didn't you just leave? Why come to the waiting room?"_

_He shrugs, "Who knows. The painkillers were actually really good. And I really wanted to see your face, you know, no day goes by without annoying a Swan."_

"_And what did you try to annoy me with?"_

"_Which part do you mean? Where I 'escaped', where I asked you about the mysterious blue food-thing, or when I tried to hit on the wolf girl?"_

"You hit on Ruby_? Oh God!"_

"_I did, and you were really pissed at it!"_

"_No way."_

"_Aye, you were. You'll see when we break this damn curse."_

_She sighs. "Yeah. Who knows."_

"_I do. We'll figure it out one day. If not today, then tomorrow."_

"_And we'll stay awake until that? Maybe we'll just fell asleep of boredom eventually."_

"_I know plenty of activities against boredom, and for half of them we don't even have to leave this room."_

_She reaches a hand up to his bed, grabs the pillow and hits him in the face with it._

* * *

Emma arrives to the docks and looks around her. He's not there, no one's there actually.

"Killian!" she shouts one more time. "I know you're here! Killian!"

"Emma?"

She spins to see him on his ship, staring down at her.

"Don't go", she says, shaking her head.

"I wasn't going to leave", he says. "At least not for good."

She starts hoping. Maybe not everyone leaves. Maybe he's always going to come back.

"Then why?" she asks.

"I thought I could find a solution elsewhere", he says, looking down.

Emma gasps and walks up next to him. The moment her feet touch the deck she feels unsure again, like she lost her balance.

"Tell me the truth", she says slowly.

He shakes his head. "It doesn't matter, Emma."

"It does to _me_!" she says. They stare at each other for a second, then she pulls out the note she wrote herself. She hands it to him and says, "Read it."

He looks confused.

"It's my note", she says. "Just read it."

Her heart is beating hard, her blood is rushing in her ears when he takes it away.

He slowly opens it and starts reading, "_Whatever you think the date is today, it isn't. It's the 21st__ of October. You were cursed by Tamara six days ago. Basically, you're going back in time._ What is the point of this?"

"Just keep reading", she says, her hands are shaking.

"_Greg and Tamara ran away. They want to take Henry to Peter Pan. __Neal's dead. He's actually Gold's son, Baelfire. You went to Manhattan to find him, and he came to live in Storybrooke before Tamara killed him. I'm sorry. Regina's on your side. Henry's with her all the time..._ Emma, I really don't see the point –"

"Just. Read it. Please."

He sighs and looks at the paper again. "_Hook is okay, too. You can trust him. He's actually helped a lot, you should thank him_."

She takes a deep breath. "Turn it around."

He does as she says. His face changes in a moment, he frowns.

"_He's propably in love with you_", he reads finally. "_And you love him too. Stop denying it_."

He hands the note back to her. She holds his hand and doesn't let go until he looks her in the eye.

"You could break the curse", she says quietly. "Because I love you, and if you –"

"I love you, too", he says, then steps closer and holds her face in his hands. "I love you, Emma. I just thought you didn't feel the same."

"You're an idiot", she whispers.

Her heart explodes the moment their lips touch. At first he tries to keep it gentle but he gets lost in her in the next second. Her hands run up his back and she pulls him closer. She feels a rush of magic running through her body.

* * *

_You would have done the same._

_Actually, no._

_The time for making deals is done, so as I'm done… with you._

_I had no idea you had such a soft side._

_And here I didn't think you'd notice._

* * *

Her hands find their way into his hair, and he tilts his head to the side to get closer to her.

* * *

_You're really into this, aren't you? _

_Keep smiling, buddy. _

_If I were to pick dead guy of the year, I'd pick you._

_Really?_

_I can help._

_Why should we trust you?_

* * *

Her heart is beating so loud she fears the whole town hears it. But it's not like she cares.

* * *

_You and I, we understand each other._

_Worked quite well for me._

_Why are you really doing this?_

_I really don't have time for you now!_

_You reminded me, that I could care for others, too._

_You should lay back and rest._

_What if she'll be dead in the morning?_

_If any of you had noticed, I was not asking a question._

_I'm staying with you._

_Why did you come back?_

_I'm here with you, am I not?_

* * *

She feels his arms form a grip around her and he lifts her up to spin her around.

* * *

_Because I believe in you._

_So why did you come back?_

_The offer still lives._

_Did anything happen between us?_

_I'm here to look after you._

_Why am I hugging you?_

_You came back?_

_Would you like to find out, lass?_

_Something made you trust me._

_Thank you._

_What if one day I just won't believe it?_

_And you're good._

_How did we become so big friends?_

_Hook, there's something I –_

* * *

She pulls back to take a deep breath. She already forgot how to breathe. He stares back at her, his eyes are really bright, grey, blue and green at the same time.

"I –" she starts. Her arms are around his neck, their nose are touching. "I remember", she whispers. "I remember everything. I love you."

He kisses her one more time, and this time she can feel his smile pressing against hers.

And his fingers caress her face.

"We should tell your parents. About the curse, I mean."

And she feels completely balanced.

"Yeah. Yeah, we should."

And everything is perfect in the world.

* * *

**Please tell me what you thought of the ending! I know I drowned in feels writing it, and September just can't come fast enough.**

**Thank you all for reading it! I appreaciate every comment and review you left, I can't say enough how much it means to me.**

**OK I'll go now, I've died of feeeels anyway. See ya!**


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